Windows Vista Pocket Reference is the ideal guide to setting up and navigating the basics of this new operating system, from the new user interface to networking, multimedia, security, and mobility. This pocket reference offers four sections that will familiarize readers with Vista quickly:

Getting Started gives a crash course in using Windows Vista, including the user interface, handling files, folders, drives and search, and working with hardware.

Networking, the Internet and Wireless offers a tour of Internet Explorer 7, a wireless networking guide, and how to set up and maintain home networks.

Multimedia shows how to use the Media Center, Windows Media Player, and how to handle graphics and photos, podcasts and MP3 players.

Security, Mobility, and Troubleshooting visits the security features, shows how to tune up Vista, troubleshoot problems, and use Vista with mobile devices.

Preston Gralla

Preston Gralla is the editor of WindowsDevCenter.com and OnDotNet. He is the author of Internet Annoyances, PC Pest Control, Windows XP Power Hound, and Windows XP Hacks, Second Edition, and co-author of Windows XP Cookbook. He has also authored more than 30 other books. He has written for major national newspapers and magazines, including PC Magazine, Computerworld, the Los Angeles Times, the Dallas Morning News (where he was the technology columnist), USA Today, and others. A well-known technology expert, Preston has also appeared on many TV and radio programs and networks, including CNN, MSNBC, and NPR. In addition, he's won a number of awards for his writing, including Best Feature in a Computer Magazine from the Computer Press Association.

The animal on the cover of Windows Vista Pocket Reference is a European common frog (Rana temporaria), also known as the "brown frog" or "grass frog." This species inhabits Europe from the Pyrenees to the Urals and West Siberia. It can be found in just about any damp habitat within this range, including lowland and mountain forests, meadows, swamps, ponds, lakes, rivers, gardens, backyards, and parks. The European common frog has a small, squat body and a wide, flat head. The frog is typically brown or grayish in color but can also have yellowish or red hues. The lower segments of its backbone are fused into a stiff rod called the urostyle, which, along with its strong pelvic bones, helps provide strength and firmness to the rear of the body. The frogs have powerful hind legs and webbed feet, which contribute to their excellent jumping and swimming abilities. The males of the species tend to be slightly smaller than the females and are identifiable by whitish swellings on the inner digits of their front feet. During breeding season, these swellings support dark "nuptial pads" that enable the male to grasp the female more effectively. The male can be very vocal when trying to attract a mate, even croaking underwater. Once he has attracted a female, he climbs on her back and embraces her in a tight, sometimes suffocating grip called amplexus, which can last up to two days. He fertilizes the eggs as the female lays them. In recent years, scientists researching the species in the Pyrenees have discovered a behavior known as "clutch piracy," in which gangs of males search for newly laid eggs to fertilize them again. The researchers have found evidence of fertilization from as many as four males in a single clutch of eggs. Although huge numbers of eggs are laid, few frogs survive to adulthood. Tadpoles are preyed upon by both terrestrial and aquatic animals, and adult frogs count grass snakes, kingfishers, and herons among their many predators. Additionally, many frogs are caught by humans for the purposes of education, medicine, and science. Overall, however, this particular species is neither declining nor threatened. The cover image is from Wood's Reptiles, Fishes, Insects, &c. The cover font is Adobe ITC Garamond. The text font is Linotype Birka; the heading font is Adobe Myriad Condensed; and the code font is LucasFont's TheSans Mono Condensed.

169(!) pages of Windows Vista "secrets" in a small pocket-size format! Following the traditions of "true geek" reference materials this book from O'Reilly is all you need to guide you through Vista quick and dirty. Especially if you hate bloated 900-1200 page monsters.